Fire and Light
by XigHeart
Summary: AU Roxas is the new kid that moves to Radiant Garden. He meets the notorious Organization XIII through his cousin Sora. Little did he know, he'd be entering the greatest adventure of his life. AkuRoku Soriku Zemyx [DISCONTINUED] This will likely never be touched again.
1. An Introduction

**Chapter 1: An Introduction**

"_Shall I introduce myself in a way thy would appreciate? Or shall I do so in a way that I shall remember and love." –Myself._

8. Axel

The organization was a place where one either thrived or was destroyed. No one expected a mish-mash of high school age students and very few adults to be behind the nations most dangerous crime syndicate. Axel Gonzalez pondered his place in Organization XIII while waiting for a drop. He mainly sold explosives but he also dealt. He thought about the first few days in the Organization. The initiation was always filled with drugs, beatings, and rape. He was number 8. At the time of initiation, Axel Gonzalez was fourteen years old.

He lit a cigarette as he remembered the first time he sold drugs. Fourteen fucking years old and he had more than two ounces of cocaine stashed in his room where his addict of a mother couldn't find it. He had to do it. He had to do it so he and his older brother could still have a home when she was arrested. Two ounces of the finest quality crack that he sold for the Organization and payment for his services would fetch him enough money to call the police on his mother so he and his brother could live peacefully. They'd get off on legal matters because Axel was in the Organization.

He remembered getting home that day with thousands of munny in hundred dollar bills. He kicked open his mothers door and told her to get out of the house. There was a huge fight where Axel was stabbed by a kitchen knife and gained a few broken bones while Reno got a few bruises. Their mother was arrested and when he and Reno where about to be taken to the hospital ER when Axel's standard issue Organization necklace fell out of his shirt. They were taken to VIP rooms and Xemnas paid their medical bills in full, after many discounts were taken.

He remembered getting to his new apartment with Reno. Neither of them was of age or could legally be on their own, but because of the Organization it didn't matter. He remembered how _angry_ Reno was that he had taken their mother away from them no matter how abusive she was. Reno was also angry with Axel for getting involved in something so dangerous as the Organization. But Axel didn't care. He was free and so was his brother. They were going to be okay. That's all that mattered to him. He finished his cigarette.

Snapping out of his memories, Axel spotted his supplier and greeted him, "Hey Enrique, you've been paid right?" The Hispanic man nodded and handed the redhead what was labeled as a bag of flour. "Yup, as always. Good doing business with you eight. School starts tomorrow doesn't it?" the seller asked. Axel snorted and lit another cancer stick, "Yup. 11th grade, woop-dee-freaking-doo. Laters Enrique." He turned to his car and drove home.

Once he dropped the merchandise off at Xemnas' house, he got home and flopped on his bed. Sexy back blasted from his headphones and he sang along with a smile, "I'm bringing sexy back. You other brothers don't know how to act…" He picked up his phone and texted his biggest partner in crime. Nicole Takahashi, otherwise known as Cole. Her number in the Organization was 8.2,

_'Cole, what are we doing after school tomorrow?'_

Less than five seconds later came a reply,

_'I was talking to Riku and Sora's cousin is coming to town to stay. We're showing the poor kid around. :D'_

Axel smiled and replied,

_'Sounds fun. What's the kid's name? And how old and what?'_

Cole replied in seconds again,

_'Roxas. 16. Blonde. Looks like Sora. Kinda emoish. Lates man. Gotta take care of the baby.' _

Axel read the text message and put his phone down. Reno popped his head in, "Lights out kid. School is tomorrow." Axel's older smiled at him and ruffled his hair.

"Thanks Reno. I'll sleep soon. I just need to finish up some business before I go to sleep," Axel smiled.

Reno sighed, "I really wish you wouldn't. I just got a job working at with Rude. His boss seems pretty chill too. The Organization and Xemnas are bad news."

Axel sighed himself and replied, "Reno, I've been in the business for 3 years now. It's gotten us the money we've needed since dad's gone and mom's a fucking addict. We've survived off of this. Besides, you know the rule. Once you're in, you're in for life."

Reno sighed. "Alright kid. I'm really grateful you know right? I love ya, yo," Reno said. He kissed his kid brother on the forehead.

Axel smiled, "Love you too Reno. Got it memorized?"

Reno smiled and ruffled his hair again. He left the room quietly and went to sleep.

Axel stepped over to his desk and made sure his laptop (a Macbook Pro 17in, his pride and joy) was in place where he left it. Then fixed the mess on top of the desk. All the book sized papers and notebooks were placed on the left and his computer was pushed to the back of the desk so he'd have enough space in the front for his homework. Then he packed up his writing utensils into his cylindrical pencil bag. After that, he put everything he needed for school neatly into his black backpack.

Now that his OCD was satisfied, Axel smiled and decided to get ready for bed. He lit a new candle, one of those tall thin ones that people use for Christmas Advent, and said the prayer that he did almost every night,

"And shepherds we shall be,  
>For Thee, my Lord, for Thee.<br>Power hath descended forth from Thy hand,  
>That our feet may swiftly carry out Thy command.<br>So we shall flow a river forth to Thee  
>And teeming with souls shall it ever be.<br>In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti."

After his prayer, Axel left the candle lit and got into bed. The smell of smoke and faint firelight was all it took to lull him to sleep.

8.2. Cole

Standing at a _measly_ 5'11", Nicole Takahashi enjoyed her life immensely. She had a well paying job, a wonderful spouse, and a beautiful daughter. Cole pulled her extremely long hair back into a bun when she got back to her house after dropping off a load of firearms to some shady buyer that Xemnas found. She smiled at her lover who was sleeping on the couch with their daughter in a crib beside her.

She smirked when her phone went off and she saw that it was her devious partner in work, Axel. She read the texts and had a short conversation.

Cole dropped her phone onto her bed and picked up her crying child. It wasn't even really hers. It was her girlfriend's. Namine Kamikaze was a beautiful baby who was quite fussy on occasion, but usually very quiet. Namine's mother was Larxene Kamikaze, who in Cole's opinion was the most beautiful woman ever.

Larxene was impregnated when she was raped about a year and a half prior. She joined the Organization when she was six months pregnant. Larxene was number twelve, the newest member. Currently, she was resting while Cole took care of her child. Cole and Larxene got together when Namine was born after dancing around each other for months.

Cole smiled as she remembered when her and Larxene got together. She changed Namine while cooing at the baby softly, "Who's a good girl Nami? Who's a good girl?" She prepared a bottle and fed the baby who fell asleep in the middle of a bottle. Cole smiled softly and put Namine down then climbed into bed with Larxene.

"Good night babe. Be ready for school in the morning alright? I feel like change is in they air. The Organization is getting weak with Xemnas in the lead," Cole said as she kissed her blonde lover on the cheek.

A few minutes later, her phone rang again. This time it was a call and she got up to answer it. She answered without looking at the caller ID, "You have five fucking minutes to talk. I have a new mother and a baby over here that are sleeping."

She froze for a moment before relaxing when she heard the icy voice on the other end, "You have gall to speak to me like that 8.2. I have a job for you."

"Superior, I repeat. I have a baby and a new mother sitting less than five feet away from me. What ever you need me too do, you can ask Axel to do it. The Organization is not top priority for me. If you try to come after me, I will fuck you up beyond belief. Come after my family and I'll kill Saix," Cole bit out calmly. Her voice sounded calm on the surface but the malice in her voice was unmistakable.

"Ei-"

Cole cut him off, "No Xemnas. I have a fucking family to take care of. You can tell me to do whatever the fuck you want me to do between the hours of 5 am and 9pm. Outside of that, all bets are off," she said before hanging up on her boss. "Lates Superior," she said into the air.

She turned her phone off and climbed into bed. Larxene turned to her and put an arm around her. Cole smiled and the two of them fell asleep together.

9. Demyx

Demyx never really understood why he was in the Organization. He knew that he was a ditz in front of everyone, even if most of it was an act. Everyone dealt drugs, but he and Zexion were the literal pimps in it. They dealt women along with the drugs. He was good with people and was easily trusted due to his apparent stupidity. He smiled at the thought of it.

_Of course I'm so stupid and a ditz. Let us go make fun of Demyx. Call him a dunce, he won't know what it means, _he thought bitterly. He shook his head to clear his depressing thoughts and continued what he was doing.

Demyx swam around in his pool near midnight while admiring his blue-haired lover. He thought for a moment, _I can't decide if I love water more or if I love Zexion more. Wait, I can. Zexion loves me too. And I love him more anyway. _He smiled to himself and got out of the pool to sit next to said lover, who was reading a tome of a book. Demyx watched his boyfriend's eyes dart back and forth across the pages.

"Zexy… Pay attention to me," Demyx whined as he draped himself dripping wet over his boyfriend.

"Demyx, you just swam ten laps in the last ten minutes. Three were butterfly stroke, two were freestyle, one was breath stroke, two were backstroke, and two were doggy paddle. I am paying attention," Zexion sighed with a sappy smile. "I can't not pay attention to you babe. You're too mesmerizing."

Demyx felt so loved at that moment that all he could do was make a loved face and kiss his lover. "I love you too Zexion," he said softly as he pulled away from the kiss. He held on to the blue-haired boy and was content. They sat so Demyx was sitting between Zexion's legs and leaned the blunet's torso.

"School starts tomorrow," Zexion commented after about half an hour of a comfortable silence and just relishing in each other's presence. "Back to work with the Organization. Back to work with school. Back to shit. Sora's bringing a new kid in and it seems like everything is going to change," he sighed quietly.

Demyx leaned his head back and kissed Zexion on the cheek, "Possibly, but change isn't always a bad thing."

Zexion smiled at Demyx and said, "Thanks babe. I love you."

"I love you too. But what are you thanking me for?" Demyx asked smiling dopily though a sleep-filled haze.

"For always knowing what to say to make me feel better. Even if you don't realize it," Zexion kissed Demyx who smiled. "Come on my melodious nocturne, let's go to bed."

Demyx yawned cutely and muttered, "Idunwanna." Zexion smiled and nudged Demyx up, "Come-on Demy. I can't carry you even if I do make a good pillow."

Demyx gave a sly smile before standing abruptly, bringing Zexion up with him and in his arms. "Lets go to bed Zex," and so they did.

9.5. Will

Will Kazan stood around his apartment that he shared with his partner in the Organization, Demyx. Demyx was out swimming with Zexion and Will was smoking a cigarette while thinking about relationships. Practically everyone he knew had partners. Xemnas had Saix, Vexen had Marluxia, Demyx had Zexion, Xaldin had Xigbar, Luxord had Lexaus, Riku had Sora, and even the school principal Squall Leonhart had the P.E. teacher Cloud Strife.

Will sighed to himself, exhaling smoke. He was jealous. Not out for revenge jealous, but still jealous. He just wanted a little love. His cigarette was nearly done when his phone rang.

"Hey Xigbar, what's up man?" he said as he answered the call.

"_Hey 9.5, me and Xaldin were wondering if you wanted to come to the club with us. We could find you a nice man for the night before school starts,"_ Will could practically hear the wink and smirk in Xigbar's voice.

"Maybe. I don't know if I want to. I'm pretty tired but I can be out on Friday," Will replied with a sigh. "Is there another reason?"

"_Yea I kinda need you to deal here tonight dear. Axel dropped off a load tonight and we need to start selling," _Xigbar said. "_We'll pay you extra for your time." _

Will sighed, "Fine. I guess I'm not the only one being busy and lovey-dovey before school huh? And the only one who hasn't done any work in the last few days. Where you at?"

"_We're at our gay bar, love. Wait we have three. We're at Nobody's Dusk," _Xigbar laughed through the phone.

"Alright I'll be there soon. Lates Xigbar," he said as he hung up.

Will glanced at his mirror and took in his current appearance. His black hair with electric blue streaks was mussed enough to give him that just-fucked appearance. But all he was wearing was a white wife beater and his boxers. So he pulled on a pair of skinny jeans with chains attached and a black vest. Then to accessorize, he put on about five belts (only one of which kept his pants up) and clipped on the standard Organization necklace.

About ten minutes later saw him in Nobody's Dusk gay bar, which was owned by the Organization's very own Xigbar and Xaldin. He by passed the hour-long line by flashing his necklace at the bouncer and walked right in. He found Xigbar in the VIP section of the bar.

Will smiled and smacked the older man on the head. "Dude, where's the stuff? I'll start dancing as soon as you give it to me," Will said with an annoyed look on his face.

Xigbar just laughed and handed him a handful of small bags. "Let it go kid. You're going to be here a while. Text Demyx to take your stuff to school in the morning, you can stay the night," Xigbar said. He was 25years old and his boyfriend/husband, Xaldin, was 26. They ran three homo-friendly clubs in the fair city of Radiant Garden, Nobody's Dusk being one popular with high school students who could pay enough for underage entrance.

Will smiled at his older friend, "Sure thing Xiggy. Lates man." He sauntered off onto the dance floor and began his course of dancing, seducing, and dealing. His dance mesmerized people who had the pleasure of seeing it. He relished in the attention. His work was being done and he enjoyed it all.

Around 2am, he sent Demyx a text even though said boy was asleep.

'_Take my bag to school for me would you? I've spent the night at Nobody's Dusk working for Xigbar. I'll meet you at our table.'_

He sold his entire stash, then some more and decided he'd had enough for the night. He looked for Xigbar or Xaldin again and found them both flirting by the bar. "Hey Xaldin! I'm done for the night. Where's my bonus and where can I get some sleep?" He shouted to them over the noise of the club.

Xaldin pressed a kiss to Xigbar's head and threw an envelope at Will. It contained over 500 munny at first glance. Then Xaldin continued to say, "You know the combination for the lock on our apartments. We have one upstairs in this building. I've texted you the apartment number already if you haven't gotten it."

Will glanced at his phone again and saw that yes, he did have a text from Xaldin. It directed him to apartment 5C. He plugged his phone in to one that matched it, set an alarm, and slept, completely ready for school.

13. Roxas

Roxas definitely was not a morning person. It was the first day of school in an entirely new city, in an entirely new country, and with entirely new people. He was not happy. Roxas Utada and his cousin, Sora Hikaru, were currently milling about the breakfast table. Sora was as always bouncing off the walls eating some sugary cereal and Roxas was trying to stay awake while half-heartedly eating poptarts.

Roxas flopped his head on the table for what seemed to be the hundredth time that morning. "Sora text your boyfriend and see when he's getting here so I can go to school and finally wake up," he said groggily.

"Sure thing!" Sora chirped. Before he could finish typing it, Riku walked into the house. "Ah! Speak of the devil," Sora smiled and kissed Riku on the cheek.

"And he shall appear. Come-on homo-station, let's go," Roxas said half awake. He slung his backpack over his shoulder and went to the door. "Coming fathead?" he asked Sora with a smile.

Riku just silently smiled and took Sora's hand. "Coming Rox! Let's get to school! Riku, you don't want to be late for the first day of your senior year do you?" Sora said smiling happily as both boys followed Roxas and left for school.

At school, which is called Radiant Garden High School, Roxas received his schedule and headed to class with Sora. "Hey man, do any of your friends have a similar schedule to mine? I have no clue where any classes are," he asked his brunet cousin.

Sora glanced at Roxas' schedule and sent a bunch of texts out. "Hey! Yea, one of my Junior friends has classes right next door to yours every period. His name is Axel. He said he'd come take you. We'll hang out with him after school too. He and his friends know a bunch if places that I know you'll like to hang out," Sora told him with a huge smile.

Roxas finally fully woke up and glanced down the hall to see two very tall people laughing and walking their way. One was a girl with long straight black hair, and the other was a boy with red, spiked hair. Both looked dangerous and wild, but warm and inviting at the same time. When they got up to him, the redhead ruffled Sora's hair and gave Riku a fistbump. "Hello boys, I assume blond shorty here is who I'll be escorting around school for these first few days?" he said smirking, his tattoos bent a little with the curve of his cheeks.

Before Sora could say anything Roxas cut in, "Axel I presume? Yea well I'm not short, you're just a fucking giant. Why are you and your friend so tall huh?"

"The boy does have a point Ax. We are tall beyond reasonable logic for a couple of juniors," the girl said laughing. "Hi Roxas. I'm Nicole but you can just call me Cole or 8.2. I answer to both," Cole introduced herself with a smile.

At that point, the bell signaling that it was about time for students to head to class.

Axel sighed, "Well its about time to head to class. We usually wait for the two minute bell to ring before heading off, that was the ten minute bell, but since it's your first day we'll go early." Then he smiled at Roxas with a gleam the blond didn't recognize.

Roxas could tell that Cole was holding in a laugh and sighed, "Alright guys lead the way." And then they were off to their first class of their first day at school.

1. Xemnas

"Eight and eight point two are getting disobedient," Xemnas heard Saix say. They were sitting together on a window ledge before class started. Saix was half sitting, half lying between Xemnas' legs with his head on the sliveret's shoulder.

Xemnas sighed defeated, "They are. But they work the best when they're like that. I may be the Superior, but I'm not evil. I know they will literally kill you if I don't let them have at least some of their freedoms. I can't let that happen to you. I won't loose you Saix." He kissed his blue-haired lover on the cheek and held him to his chest.

Saix felt his heart constrict. That had been the most loving thing Xemnas had ever said to him or done for him. He put a hand on top of his lover's and smiled, "I love you too." Xemnas would never say that and Saix knew it. He sighed contently and smiled again. Change was in the air.


	2. Events

Author's note: Hello everyone! This is Amadeus speaking. :D I left this out in chapter 1 because I wanted things to get going. (*cough*itotesforgot*cough*) but yea. So here is Chapter 2! I hope you enjoy. also. i must say that i talk a lot about organized crime and dealing drugs... and i just have to say... I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT! 8D its my 'creative freedom' ;D

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and it's characters belong to Disney and Squeenix. Not me. I own the plot, Cole, and Will. Thats about it. (seriously if KH was mine. they would all be gay. and more gay then they already are. xD)

Chapter 2: Events

"_The events we want to remember, we always forget. The events we want to forget, we always remember." –Myself_

* * *

><p>8. Axel<p>

As Axel showed Roxas the way to his first class, he blabbered on about unimportant things with Cole while his mind was occupied with other things. _Okay this kid is pretty cute. Why am I calling him kid? He's only a year younger than me. Okay either way I like him. Got it memorized? Is he even gay or bi? Arg. Wait, he asked me a question._ Axel blinked and snapped out of his daze. "Sorry, spaced out for a second. What did you ask me?" Axel said with a charming smile.

Roxas just scoffed at Axel's smile and repeated himself, "Are there any people I should avoid or things I should avoid doing? When I asked Cole, she just laughed and said everyone is terrified of her and no one is dumb enough to fuck with her. So I ask you." The blonde glared down at the taller boy. Which took significant amounts of skill considering Roxas was a good foot shorter than Axel.

Axel gave a very manly giggle at the blond's facial expression before answering, "Well if you decide to hang out with us, you only have to worry about avoiding Seifer, Rai, and Fuu. If you don't, then you have to worry about us." Axel smirked again before continuing, "As for things you should avoid doing… Don't piss off Mr. Strife. He will hurt you and he will not get in trouble. In fact, his husband Leon, who is our principal, will put you in detention for pissing Mr. Strife off. That's about it. We're pretty free to do what we want or need around here." He finished with a flourish of his hands.

Roxas just smirked a little, "I think I'll take the safe route then and stick with you guys. At least life will be interesting."

Axel just smiled and stopped in front of two adjacent doors. "Well Roxy, classrooms with similar subject matter are next to each other in this school. We happen to have the same sequence of classes. And Cole has the same classes as me. Cole doesn't always answer her phone when she gets texts so Sora got to me first. We'll see you after class," Axel explained to the sophomore standing in front of him.

Cole went on to say, "I see that you're in the regular sophomore class so get in. We're next door in the advanced senior class even though we're juniors. We're fucking smart."

"Got it memorized Roxy?" Axel said smiling with a tap to his temple.

Roxas just rolled his eyes with a smile and went to class. "Smart asses," he threw over his shoulder at Axel and Cole.

Cole just laughed and called after him, "Better a smart ass than an idiot shorty."

Axel just smirked at the exchanged and checked out Roxas _cute little ass_ as he walked away from them. _Whoa. Okay cute little ass. I need to start censoring myself about now, _Axel thought to himself, his cheeks turning pink.

Cole turned to her older friend and said in a teasing tone, "You like him, don't you Eight?"

Axel's blush darkened a little and replied, "So what if I do? Its not like I know if he even likes guys. But he's cute, even your lessy self can see that." He stuck his tongue out at Cole.

"So mature Axie. And you're right; the kid is adorable. Now let's get to class," Cole laughed and walked through the door to their classroom, which was for AP Calculus BC.

"That kid, is older than you Cole. You little fifteen year old," Axel said laughing. "You're just to smart, tall and mature for your own good," Axel smiled at his younger partner.

"Actually I don't even turn fifteen till the end of the month. I'm still fourteen. Suck on that, Ax. I graduate from this shit hole at sixteen and I go on to Uni and Medschool and all the fun stuff," Cole said laughing. She sat down in the middle of the class and pulled out a plain looking notebook and started scribbling in a page near the back of it.

Axel sat down next to her and leaned back in his chair. Class wasn't set to start for another five minutes and their teacher wasn't there yet. Axel sent out texts to some of his high school clients,

'_I have maryjane and powder. I'm in the calculus room. You have three minutes if you want it now.' _

Cole glanced at him over her writing, "I have crystal in my bag I think if you want to add that to the list."

Axel smirked a little, "I think we'll get rich today."

_'8.2 has crystal. Same place.'_

Cole laughed, "Sweetie, we already are." Then the first couple of clients came in and bought off both in the Organization.

A few minutes later they kicked everyone out and to come find them at lunch if they wanted it still. "I love the Organization sometimes. So much cash, and we'll never get arrested for it," Axel said counting the money he had. "Yup, straight up 200 munny in less than five minutes."

Cole just rolled her eyes, "Get your notes out Number Eight and take some goddamned notes so I don't feel like and idiot next to you." The she smiled and ruffled the redhead's hair.

"Well why would I do that when I could just get a copy of your notes," he teased. He heard the bell ring and saw the door open. Their teacher, Aerith Gainsborough, walked in and class began.

The rest of their classes till lunch were very boring. The only entertainment they had was witty banter between themselves and Roxas while they took him to class. Lunch, on the other hand, was definitely entertaining.

"So Roxy, you have two choices for lunch: sitting with me, Cole and the rest of our group, or sitting with Riku, Sora, and theirs. It will kind of decide what we do with you for the rest of the year," Axel said sternly.

"But no pressure!" Cole said with a laugh. "If you decide to sit with us you go one way. If you sit with Sora you go another. Neither is better or anything, just different." She flung he long hair over her shoulder and walked to where the Organization sat during lunch. It was in the Quad under one of the biggest trees at school.

* * *

><p>13. Roxas<p>

Faced with one of the biggest decisions of anyone's high school career, Roxas decided to take a huge chance, "I think I'll stick with you guys. I see Sora at home everyday, so I think I may need a change of pace." He smiled at Axel. _Oh yea that, and I think you're fucking hot so I think I'll sit with you so I can stare at you for longer periods of time. _

Roxas was slightly worried when Axel turned to him with a serious expression, "There may be consequences if you sit with us. Not necessarily punishment, but consequences. If you're scared of the unknown, sit with Sora."

"I'm not scared. I need a serious change in my life right now," Roxas said with a sigh.

Axel just smiled, "Ever hear about Organization XIII Roxy?"

Roxas' eyes widened, "Of course I've heard of it! Who hasn't?"

Axel's smile turned into a smirk as he replied, "You've just spent your morning free time with #8 and 8.2." With that Roxas watched stunned as Axel walked in the same direction as Cole.

A few seconds later Roxas snapped out of his reverie and followed Axel. "Don't think your big bad gang scares me Ginger!" he said smiling sweetly as he caught up with him.

Roxas saw Axel smile widely out of the corner of his eye and smiled himself. "So what does the Organization do exactly? I mean I've heard rumors but I assume they've all be exaggerated and such," Roxas asked curiously.

Axel chuckled, "We do everything the rumors say we do. All of us have killed, or at least seriously injured someone during out time in the Organization. We've all gotten abusive people put into prison. We've all dealt drugs. Some of us pimp men or women. Others of us have legitimate business ventures that bring in the extra venue to give us bonuses." He explained very matter-of-factly. "Oh and Cole over there may not look like it, but she's a hell of a fighter. We place bets on her when she enters a competition."

Roxas just looked at him stunned. Then Axel pointed out the tallest tree in the Quad, "That's where the Organization sits." Roxas turned to look at who was sitting there. There were quite a few people and the only two girls Roxas could see were Cole and a blonde girl that he thought he had in this English class. Then, among the boys, there were one with blue hair, two with blonde, and one with pink.

When Roxas and Axel got to the Tree, Cole walked up to Roxas and put an arm around him. "Hey Rox! Okay the people we have here are , Vexen and Marluxia, Demyx and Zexion, and Larxene. Larx is my lover and the mother of our child," Cole introduced everyone as she pointed to them with a smile. Then turning back to the rest of the group, she shouted over their idle conversation, "Oi! Everyone this is Roxas, be nice he's little."

Roxas gave a small, embarrassed wave and sat next to Axel. He grabbed the sandwich that Sora had made for him that morning out of his bag and looked around. _Oh yum. Ham and cheese, my cousin knows me so well, _he thought smiling. He saw that most of the Organization had a punk style even though each one had their own unique air about them.

Something else caught his eye, there were a few people coming and going from the tree. All smiling strangely as they left. Each person talked to one of the Organization members, something was exchanged, and they left. _Holy shit! Are they dealing drugs right in the middle of school! _

Axel spotted Roxas' look and chuckled a little, "If that look is what I think it is, then yes, yes we are."

"You guys deal in the middle of a high school!" Roxas said incredulously.

Axel laughed loudly at the blond's exclamation. "Yes we do. Half of our patrons are high school students. You should watch Zexion and Demyx talking to the boys that hire out the women, or even Marly and Vexen to the boys who hire out our boys. Its so much more interesting," Axel smiled.

Roxas was still shocked that Axel could talk about crime like this with such a flippant air. "That seems kind of heartless, just so ya know," Roxas said pouting a little.

Axel turned to him with an odd look on his face, "What were you doing when you were fourteen Roxy?"

"I was skateboarding and reading comics like every other fourteen year old boy!" Roxas replied indignantly.

"Well at the age of fourteen I was beaten and stabbed by my mother and got her arrested. Moved to a new apartment with my older brother. Killed my father. Dealt my first drugs. Oh and lost my virginity to rape," Axel said with a snort. "That's how I'm so heartless."

Roxas went quiet and stared at the sandwich in his hands. He saw Cole come sit by them.

"I've been in the Organization since I was twelve. I'm still fourteen right now actually. I've assassinated more than five people. I've watched people OD and do nothing to save them. I've nearly been killed by my own parents six times, and been in the hospital because of them countless times. We're not heartless really, just hardened. The real world isn't a nice place. We in the Organization have learned that young. Far younger than we should have," Cole said with a small, sad smile. "Larxene is seventeen and she's just had a baby. We're raising little Namine together," she continued as she pulled out her phone and showed Roxas a picture of the baby.

"She's beautiful," was all Roxas could manage to say to what Cole had told him. Then Larxene came and sat on one of Cole's legs, wrapping an arm around the younger girl's neck.

"All of us come from pasts where shit has happened and we survived. Just ask around, most of us had abusive parents. One of the members has a scar on his face and it was from his dad. It was a broken beer bottle just a few months ago. We all know how shitty the world can be and our main goal here is to make it better for those we care about. Namine will never have to experience what its like to loose a parent or any abuse, we won't allow it," the blonde girl said. Cole kissed her softly and the couple smiled.

"Yea… Shit happens," Roxas said softly.

"_GET OUT OF THE HOUSE YOU BASTARD. I WILL NOT STAND FOR YOU AND YOUR CHEATING ANYMORE. CAN'T YOU SEE IT'S DESTROYING US!" A five-year-old Roxas heard from his hiding place in the bottom of his big brother's closet. Cid wasn't back from one of his friend's houses yet and Roxas was terrified. _

"_Don't fight anymore. Please don't fight anymore. I don't like it at all. Mommy… Daddy… Stop fighting!" Roxas whispered to himself shaking and crying in the closet. He heard a crash then more screaming. This time a masculine voice joined the fray. _

_He heard the door open and his brother yell, "STOP IT YOU FUCKING IDIOTS. ROXAS IS TERRIFIED OF THIS SHIT AND I'M SICK OF IT. IF YOU HAVE PROBLEMS, TAKE CARE OF THEM WHEN MY BABY BROTHER ISN'T AROUND TO HEAR IT!" Then there were footsteps and the closet door was wrenched open. _

_Roxas was pulled into Cid's arms and sobbed loudly. "I'm scared big brother. What if mommy doesn't want me too?" Roxas asked innocently. _

"_Mommy will always want you babybro. She and daddy are just fighting right now. It'll be okay soon. I promise," Cid said comforting his little brother. _

_Roxas just sniffed loudly and clung to Cid. At the tender age of sixteen, Cid became Roxas' greatest hero._

* * *

><p>8.2. Cole<p>

Cole smiled softly as Larxene took a seat on her. Her blonde lover put in her two cents into the conversation and a slightly uncomfortable silence over took them.

Cole just smirked and put an arm around Larxene's waist and addressed Roxas, "You know shorty, relish in how nice Larx is being right now. She's usually a bitch."

Cole just laughed as Larxene hit her on the head with her chopsticks. "Be lucky I like you and decided to follow what you said about being nice to Roxas," Larxene said shortly.

Roxas watched the exchange with a smile. Cole caught the smile and tightened her hold on her lover a little perfectly content. _The feeling of being in love is an amazing one. I hope Roxas and Axel find it,_ she thought to herself, her eyes closing.

Then someone tapped her on the shoulder and waved a bill in front of her face. She sighed a little and grabbed it, "I only have crystal right now if that's what you want. Superior and Eight have more if you want it."

The unnamed jock just said, "Crystal is good."

Cole then pushed Larxene off her and grabbed her bag. She with drew a small black plastic bag out and handed it to him.

"This is it? I just gave you fifty munny!" he said angrily.

"Listen you little hyped up bitch. Seifer is it? What we sell is the highest quality shit you could get anywhere. You won't accidentally OD on this or get sick or anything. That's why it costs. It's expensive to make and more expensive to sell. Get over yourself. By off of Sephiroth if you want cheap shit. But that's exactly what it will be CHEAP SHIT," Cole said with an extremely angry expression. She was sick of people arguing with her on price.

"Well you people get enough money to begin with, why don't you give us students a fucking discount or some shit," Seifer said scowling.

"Sweetie," Cole said with a sickly sweet smile, "this is Radiant Gardent. Everyone who lives here is fucking rich. Your mommy and daddy will give you all the money you want if you bat your eyes at them and say it's for blitzball. Even more so since you live in pretty little Twilight Town, the nicest neighborhood in the city. You won't get any kind of shit discount from us. Ever."

Seifer's eyes widened then he walked away shaking his head.

"So I see why no one fucks with you," Cole heard Roxas say. The ravenette girl laughed a little and replied, "Oh that was me being nice. I have more than enough information on everyone to scare the shit out of them. But I'd need a fight every now and then to keep me in shape."

Roxas just looked at her disbelievingly. "You people are insane I hope you realize," he said.

The entire Organization present heard him. They smiled and replied in unison, "It's more than insanity, its reality."

"And that's creepy," Roxas deadpanned.

Axel shot over to them and pulled his necklace out, "Oh Roxy, if you see anyone with this symbol somewhere on their body they're one of us. You will be safe around them if you mention me or Cole."

Cole nodded an affirmative. Roxas just looked wide-eyed at them and lunch continued on.

The last class of the day for Axel and Cole was AP Japanese. They walked to the foreign language wing with Roxas trailing behind them. "Ah!" Cole exclaimed, "I forget to ask Roxy! What language do you take?"

Roxas looked up, shaken from his thoughts, "Oh, I'm in Chinese Mandarin two."

"Sweet! Mandarin is the next language on my list to learn!" Axel exclaimed. Cole just laughed at the redhead's antics and Roxas blushed a faint shade of pink

"Well we should get to class. AP is going to kill us man," Cole said as they arrived at the foreign language classrooms.

Axel shrugged and said, "Bye Roxy." Then he ruffled the blond's hair.

"Lates Roxy. We'll see you after school," Cole said. Then the two organization members walked toward their class and Roxas went to his.

Axel and Cole greeted Demyx and Will happily as they entered the classroom. "Demy! _How has work whit _Zexion_ been?_" Cole asked in Japanese as practice.

"_Well enough. Some of the clients are being too rough with the girls and it's costing us munny. _Zexy_ is all annoyed because he has to wait longer to buy that new computer because _Superior_ won't spring for it,_" Demyx complained. He was a lot smarter than he made people believe and Cole was one of the few that knew so their conversation went smoothly.

"Cole laughed and replied, "_If _Zexion_ wants to buy it now I can easily lend him some._"

Demyx chuckled, "_You know how he is about money._" Cole smiled and hugged him with a laugh, "Of course."

Will and Axel were play flirting in a corner to mess with the two bible thumper kids who were in the class to become missionaries in Japan. Then Axel decided to get dramatic about it.

"Oh Will! Won't you ever love me! I'd dote on you as if you were my queen!" Axel swooned.

"But alas Axel my love. I must decline. I cannot be a queen. I'm a PRETTY PRINCESS!" Will said cracking up at the end.

He and Axel finally burst out laughing and fell over each other.

Cole just sat and watched, amused, as Demyx ran up and joined the banter by jumping on Axel's back. Cole always thought the boys' antics were cute. She always looked at them like they were her own children playing innocently in a playground.

Then class started and they day finished peacefully.

* * *

><p>13. Roxas<p>

Roxas entered the Chinese classroom to find one of the Organization members inside. The blond only recognized the blue-haired boy as a member by the necklace he wore. It was identical to the one Axel had shown him.

Roxas sat next to the boy and uncharacteristically greeted him. "Hi! I'm Roxas. I'm pretty sure you know Axel and Cole."

The other boy looked at him in slight surprise and replied, "Yea. We work together." Roxas barely heard what the boy said since he was staring at the very large, relatively new, x-shaped scar on the kid's face.

Roxas shook his head slightly to clear his head. "Oh sorry! Just… That scar on your face looks painful…" He trailed off sheepishly.

The blue-haired boy just chuckled a little, "Yea, it's only about three months old. My face hurts if I smile too hard, so excuse me if I don't do so. I'm Saix." He said with a small smile, "Its nice to meet you."

Roxas smiled back at Saix, "You too. Why weren't you sitting at with the others during lunch?"

Saix blushed a little, "My boyfriend likes to eat on the roof so I go with him."

"How cute!" Roxas laughed. Then their conversation was cut short by more students entering the classroom. Saix's face turned stony and he immediately became unapproachable.

Roxas was surprised for a moment, but before he could continue his thoughts, the bell rang and the teacher began class.


	3. Town

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm terribly sorry for the wait. . It took me way too long to write this, not to mention real life got in my way. And my beta is super patient with me. ;w; I might make a few changes later. I'M SORRY. ;A;

Disclaimer: If KH belonged to me, everyone would be having hot gay sex all the time. Clearly, doesn't be long to me.

**Chapter 3: Town**

"_Shit happens."- People everywhere_

13. Roxas

After school, Roxas walked out of class with Saix to find Axel and Cole already waiting for him with Will and Demyx. When Cole spotted Saix, she glomped him in a very anime-esque style.

"Puppy! How has your face been feeling? Superior taking care of you?" Cole asked with a squeal, being purposely obnoxious.

Roxas chuckled as Saix developed a tick on his forehead. The blue haired boy sighed before replying, "My face is fine, thanks to you; and he is, no thanks to you."

8.2 Cole

Cole sighed and let go a little, dejected, "You know how it is, Saix…"

Saix sighed and finally returned the hug, "I know, Cole…"

Cole stepped back and smiled, "Well, since it's Friday, we were going to hang out at my place. Be sure to have some fun this weekend, 'kay?" She hugged him once more then led everyone out.

They decided to walk the 'whole' two miles to the apartment she shared with Larxene. As they walked toward the complex, Cole began to explain. "So there are a few places that are pretty cool to hang out at here. There's Hollow Bastion, which is really nice and second only to Twilight Town. It has a great pizzeria that Axel, Demyx, Zexion, and I work at. Then, there is The Usual Spot, which is where Hayner and his friends hang out. They're pretty cool and Hayner's dad owns the place. It's a burger joint. We'll show you more as we pass. Oh yea, there is also a nice little park in Hollow Bastion where we hang out, too."

Roxas smiled at her, "Sounds like fun."

Axel smiled at Roxas and said, "It's hella fun, Roxy. Food, friends, and music are all we need to be happy. The work for money part just makes the food part a little easier."

Cole and Roxas laughed at Axel. "Boy, you need to cool it. You know we can't talk about that too much. It's well known that we're Orgy, but they don't know what we do," Cole reprimanded with a smile.

She continued to explain, " So most of the Organization lives in this complex called Oblivion. It ranks third in price of neighborhoods in Radiant Garden. Again, the Organization likes to take care of our own." She smiled artfully.

Once they arrived in the building, they saw that Larxene was waiting for them in the lobby with Namine in her arms. Cole broke out into a wide smile and greeted her child and lover.

"Hello my babies!" She exclaimed happily and embraced them both. Larxene kissed her on the cheek and Namine gurgled in the cute way only babies can pull off.

"Sorry Cole, but Superior just texted me. I have a job to do. I'll be back by tomorrow morning and I'll be at school if I don't come home first," Larxene sighed. "This is just so-" she sighed angrily, "STUPID!" She was only watching her language due to the small child in her arms.

Cole sighed and planted a soft kiss on her lover's lips. "I know, babe," she received Namine from her lover with a smile. "Hello baby girl," she cooed.

Larxene gave Cole a kiss on the cheek and headed out of the building. Cole sighed yet again and then turned back to the rest of her company. "So! Food. That's always good. What do you guys feel like doing?"

Sora and Roxas looked at each other. Roxas shrugged and Sora continued on to say, "Rox and I don't get hungry after school but I could go for some ice cream. It's pretty hot out for September." Roxas nodded with a smile; he was withdrawing into his shell again.

"Well I know Cole and I are going to head to the Usual Spot for a burger, then the Sand Lot is right next to it. I know you know where it is Sora, so don't give me that look," Axel piped in. The brunet was glaring at him with a 'no duh' look on his face.

Cole just snorted and wiggled a hand free to smack Axel on the head. "Let's just go. Roxy! Pay attention so we don't have to hold your hand to get you around alright?" She smirked and resituated Namine on her hip. "Everybody ready?" she said patting her back pocket to make sure her wallet was with her as she never put it in her bag.

Everybody nodded in reply and they were off.

8. Axel

The walk to the restaurants was relatively uneventful except for in Axel's mind. _Jesus shit. He needs to stop walking in front of me. Thank the deities I wore tight pants today…_ was the general thought process in the redhead's mind. He couldn't keep his eyes off Roxas' 'tight ass.'

He looked over to Cole who was cooing over her baby and started speaking in Japanese. '_Give me something seriously unattractive to think about,_' he begged with puppy eyes.

Cole snorted and replied, '_You are a teenage boy. Everything turns you on. Define unattractive?_' Namine gurgled and babbled on in the way babies do.

Axel rolled his eyes and looked at her pointedly. '_Come on, Cole. Be serious,'_ he begged her. The cousins were still walking ahead of them chatting away.

'_I am plenty serious, idiot. Trees aren't attractive. Think of those. Or your face. Your face isn't attractive,'_ Cole said with a chuckle. She returned her attention to the child in her arms. "That's right, sweetie. Uncle Axel isn't attractive. Not at all," she said in a voice which one reserves for infants and toddlers.

Axel being the completely mature young man of seventeen that he was, simply stuck his tongue out at his friend. He heard giggles ahead of him and he whipped his head toward the sound. He was met with the sight of Sora attempting to hold in his giggles while clutching his stomach, and right next to him, Roxas was staring at Axel and Cole with twitching lips.

"See something funny, Roxy?" Axel pouted, put out by being caught in his moment of uncool. He was pretty much a drug lord and could order any city official to do anything and it would be done. Uncool could not happen. He was the epitome of cool.

Roxas walked up to him with a smirk and bopped him on the nose. "Don't be silly, Red," he said. Then he turned to Sora, who was still giggling madly, "Come on! Let's go get some ice-cream!"

Sputtering, Axel watched the cousins exchange words then head off to the Sand Lot, a whopping twenty feet away, for their ice-cream. Wanting to get the last, pathetic, word in, the redhead shouted after them, "TRY THE SEASALT POPSICLES!"

At that point, Cole caved and hunched over in her own fit of laughter, her hold on Namine tightening. The baby gurgled happily when she heard her other-mother laughing. "You and your two cents. God Axel, you need to stop talking sometimes…" she said through her chuckles.

Axel, still totally not pouting, just let out an exasperated breath of air and retorted, "Come on, let's just go get some burgers. I'm really hungry now." He sauntered into the diner, reaching up his hand to smack the sign hanging over the door, proclaiming the building 'The Usual Spot.'

Cole rolled her eyes, yet again, and Namine clapped her baby hands and reached up, attempting to imitate her 'Uncle' Axel. "Well, come on then…" she muttered to herself. She was suddenly struck by an odd feeling. Namine cried out in baby speak again, giggling happily and interrupting Cole's train of thought. The teenager shook her head and followed her friend, only seconds behind him.

13. Roxas

Roxas chuckled with Sora as they crossed the threshold into the air-conditioned ice-cream parlor. He looked around, noting the California beach décor that gave it the name 'The Sand Lot.' "So Sora, what flavor do you recommend?" he asked with a pinched smile.

Sora smiled brightly at his cousin. "I really like chocolate! But that's just me. Riku likes the strawberry though. Axel and Cole are addicted to sea-salt though…" As the chocolate haired boy finished speaking, Riku rushed through the door wearing what was clearly a work uniform, jumped over the counter and ducked behind it.

Roxas snorted and muttered, "Speak of the devil…" The blond watched, amused as Riku straightened up, flustered, and Sora collapsed in another fit of 'manly' giggles. _Oh my fuck, Sora. You are the epitome of the gay stereotype. I'd be ashamed to be near you if you weren't so nice, _Roxas thought with a smile.

"Hello and welcome to the Sand Lot! What can I get for you today?" Riku said with a forced smile, clearly not comfortable with all the pomp and circumstance that came with working in a place where there were constantly a lot of people. He quickly threw his hair into a ponytail and shoved the standard issue cap onto his head.

Roxas snickered at how ridiculous his cousin's boyfriend looked in his work clothes. He decided to harass the poor kid a little more, and asked with a sickly sweet smile, "So Riku… What flavor do you suggest?"

Riku just stared at the blond with wide eyes and an expression of, 'Oh my fuck. What the fuck is this' plastered on his face. "Uh… Strawberry's good…" he said with a cocked eyebrow. Then he shifted his gaze to Sora trying to get across the message, 'Sora. Save me from your crazy twink of a cousin.'

Sora giggled in his oh so manly way and reprimanded Roxas, "Oh, be nice!" Then he turned back toward Riku and ordered his own, usual ice cream, which Riku was already half finished scooping by the time Sora started speaking. Roxas watched the two interact with a nagging feeling of envy. He wanted what they had.

Roxas was very envious of Sora. Sora's parents didn't shun him for being gay. His parents didn't send him off across the country for it. He had a loving boyfriend. He was accepted by his friends. He wasn't bullied at school. Roxas wanted to be Sora. His parents wanted him to be Sora as well. His name was even an anagram. He shook his head and returned his attention to reality. "Can I get a sea-salt popsicle? Axel recommended them," Roxas said nonchalantly.

Sora smiled knowingly and set down the money to pay. Then he turned back to Roxas, "So _Axel_, hmm?" conspiracy in his tone. Riku discretely slipped the money back into Sora's baggy pockets. Another stab of envy shot through Roxas as he watched the other two teenagers. He replied to Sora's probing question with a clipped tone. "I don't know what you're talking about, bird brain."

Sora stuck his tongue out and took a bite of his ice cream. "Oh shut up, Roxas. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Now take a seat and tell me!" he whined a little. Riku smirked from his perch behind the counter as he worked. Roxas took a bite of the popsicle he held in his hand and plopped into a chair by the nearest empty table.

"Sora, please stop asking. You don't know what it was like for me okay? Even if he is gay, or bi, or whatever, he's out of my fucking league. He's in the fucking _Organization,_ for Christ's sake. And holy shit, this is some good ice cream," the blond boy said, not taking enough time to breathe to let Sora interject. Roxas's arms stretched out on the table, ice cream loosely gripped, and his head hit the surface.

Sora simply shook his head. "You're not _there_ anymore, Rox. You're here. My parents love you just as much as they love me. And man, Axel couldn't keep his eyes off you the entire time. And even Cole didn't threaten you when you got within two feet of Axel," he said, smiling. He reached out to pat Roxas' arms.

Roxas took another bite of his popsicle and rested his head on his arm. "Sure thing, Sora. Sure," he said with a sigh. The two sat in silence for a while and Roxas polished off his popsicle. Sora was watching him with concern but he didn't know what to do. The brunet gave Riku a helpless look when Roxas stood up and headed out the door. The blond threw his popsicle stick on the sidewalk as he exited the building.

There was writing on the discarded stick. It said '_WINNER'._

8. Axel

Cole sat down with her three patty, three cheese burger, which smelled utterly delightful, and let out a groan. "Axel. We seriously need to find a way to make these things in our house," she said before settling Namine in a high chair.

"I hear you, woman," the redhead said. His own, slightly smaller, burger was on the table in front of him. He was nearly drooling from the smell of sizzling beef and melting cheese. A basket of cheese fries sat between the two to share. "So, what do you take from the blond?" he asked, trying to seem careless.

"He's troubled. Probably got flack for being gay, which is probably why he moved. Other than that, he's a pretty closed book. I approve," Cole replied distractedly. She was ripping apart part of her bun to feed to Namine as well as small chunks of meat and cheese.

Both teens looked up as they heard noises of a fight going on outside. Cole ignored it in favor for her sandwich and Axel rolled his eyes at her. "Come on, Cole! Let's check it out," he said with a pout.

"Nope. I have a burger and a baby. Go if you want, I'm staying put," the brunette said with a flippant tone. She really couldn't care less.

"Suit yourself," the redhead removed himself from his food and sauntered outside only to find Roxas lay Seifer flat on his back with Rai knocked out cold and Fuu watching from the side lines.

13. Roxas

Roxas silently fumed. He just wished someone would _understand._ A shadow fell across his path and his thoughts were interrupted by the jock from lunch, "Hey, Newbie. You're in my way." He was flanked by another dumb-looking jock and a disinterested girl.

With clenched fists and a twitch in his shoulder, Roxas lifted his head and looked the taller boy in the eyes and replied, "Your problem, dumbass? God, if you're looking for a fight, this is going to be fucking great." He smirked.

Seifer shrugged off his jacket and handed it to the girl. "I'll be glad to pound your face in, twerp," he said with a menacing smile. Roxas simply smiled at the macho-like display.

"Come at me, bro," Roxas taunted.

The two boys lunged at him while the girl slipped to the side, still looking bored out of her mind. Roxas managed to sucker punch the un-named one, knocking him out cold. Seifer grabbed Roxas around the neck in a wrestling hold with a grunt. The shorter boy calmly shoved his thumb into the crook of the jock's elbow and was released from the hold.

Seifer was swearing loudly and Roxas grabbed the larger boy's wrist, still hanging over his shoulder, and threw him over his shoulder. Seifer landed flat on his back and didn't get up.

Roxas was breathing heavily with pent-up frustration. He heard clapping from the general direction of The Usual Spot and looked up to find Axel.

"Good job, Roxy," the red head said with a smile. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

Before Roxas could answer, a blur of unnecessarily long black hair flew by, carrying a little blonde baby. "Woah! Where are you going, Cole?!" Roxas heard Axel call out.

Cole turned around to face them for a few moments and yelled out, "Larxene's in the hospital!"


	4. Hurt

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and it's characters belong to Disney and Squeenix. Not me. I own the plot, Cole, Will, and to an extent, Sora's mother.

Notes: I am so awfully sorry for this wait. Due to a lack of encouragement via reviews, it's very hard for me to get the motivation to continue this. But it's akuroku month! And in about 2 hours, it will be akuroku day here in the US. So I decided to bless you all with a new chapter. uwu I have an angsty little oneshot I'm working on for the occasion as well. I will be updating Pastel Blue sometime this week if anyone is following that. And I will be working on more of Spoony-Monster's AUs next week. Starting to get back into a working schedule again! This chapter is also unbeta'd because it has just been SO DAMN LONG. Enjoy!~

_"Maybe there's something you're afraid to say, or someone you're afraid to love, or somewhere you're afraid to go. It's gonna hurt. It's gonna hurt because it matters." –John Green_

**Chapter 4: Hurt**

8.2 Cole

Cole rushed into the hospital with her arms flailing. Sometime in the last twenty minutes that it took for her to get to Radiant Garden Public Hospital, Namine had been handed off to a much calmer Uncle Axel, who had brought Roxas along with them. The brunette stalked to the front desk and slammed her Organization insignia onto the wood in front of the poor girl who was behind it.

"Larxene Kamikaze. Where is she?" Cole said through clenched teeth.

The small redhead girl behind the desk managed to stammer out utterly nothing in the two minutes it took for her supervisor to arrive. "Ms. Takahashi, I would appreciate it greatly if you did not terrorize my employees," a tired sounding voice sounded behind the group of teenagers.

Cole whipped around to come face to face with Sara Hikaru, Sora's mother and one of the head physicians in the hospital. Sara was also very much aware of what the Organization was and who was in it, and did not approve in the least. However, the woman was still very dedicated to her job and wanted to help the children in anyway she could.

"Sorry…" Cole muttered, her eyes cast to her right. "I just need to know where Larx is."

"She's in the surgery right now. There was some internal damage and she has a broken femur. She should be out in about two hours. But then she'll have to be in the ICU until her internal organs stabilize," Dr. Hikaru replied with a face completely devoid of emotion.

Cole barely acknowledged that she heard what the doctor said before turning back to Axel. The redhead was sitting in the chairs in the middle of the room with an arm full of babbling baby and Roxas to his left. He was cooing at the child, seeing Namine's face light up as he did so. Cole watched with a small smile, _Axel would make a marvelous father one day_… She took a seat next to Axel with a sigh. "So I'll be waiting around here for a while… It'll be a few hours before Larxene even comes out of surgery and after that, it's an all-nighter to see how long it's going to take her to make a full recovery. Can you take her to Will's? I'd say give him to Marly, but he's busy with work tonight…"

The girl sighed and rubbed her temples. Sometimes she forgot that she was just a kid. Barely even fifteen and she took it upon herself to take care of a family. Now was among the few times she wished her parents were kind and she could live with them and not have to worry about all this shit.

Axel nodded and got up. "Come on, Nami! We're going to go see your Uncle Will! Are you excited?" he spoke in that voice that everyone used for children, falsely excited and hiding all the hurt of the world. Cole said good-bye to her child and watched as her tall, redhead friend walked away.

8. Axel

Axel gently cradled Namine in his arms as he walked out the hospital with Roxas at his side. The baby was thankfully asleep now, completely unaware of what was going on around her. The redhead was pretty much in a trance as he walked to Cole's car. He unlocked it and strapped Namine in. Getting into the driver's seat, he waited patiently for Roxas to get in the car on the other side. They drove in silence.

Arriving at Will's apartment complex, Axel had still said nothing. When the black haired boy answered his door, Axel uttered two words, "Larxene's hurt," before handing the baby off to his friend. Will nodded and closed the door. Roxas watched it all in silent understanding. He knew Axel would break as soon as they were alone and somewhere private. Getting back to the elevator, Axel said "I live another five floors up," and pressed the button to take them to his floor.

Axel let himself into his house and waved off Reno, inviting Roxas into his space. Getting to his room, he closed the door behind Roxas before sitting down on the floor next to his candle. With shaking hands he lit it and whispered,

"_And shepherds we shall be,__  
>For Thee, my Lord, for Thee.<em>_  
>Power hath descended forth from Thy hand,<em>_  
>That our feet may swiftly carry out Thy command.<em>_  
>So we shall flow a river forth to Thee<em>_  
>And teeming with souls shall it ever be.<em>_  
>In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti.<em>_"_

Once. Twice. Three times he recited this made up prayer to some god he didn't know even existed. He stared into the burning flame, not even noticing when Roxas sank down to the floor in front of him. The older boy reached over the flame, holding his wrist over it. Before the heat could even cause pain, a pale hand shot over and pulled Axel's wrist away. The redhead looked over to Roxas, staring into the baby blues, tears finally welling up into his eyes.

"This wasn't supposed to happen… We're invincible… No one can touch us…" Axel managed to say before a choked sob escaped his throat and his face scrunched up before he hid it in his hands. "No one has died before. No one has come through and had to go to the hospital… Larxene is one of our best fighters and she almost died…" he said through his sobs. "This couldn't have happened."

Roxas was at a loss of what to say. He scooted closer to his new friend and laid a hand on the taller boy's shoulder. He had no clue what he was getting into, Cole did not warn him about this. But, he figured that if this was something that had never happened before, there was no way she could have warned him. He leaned into Axel, attempting to welcome the redhead into his offered comfort.

Axel collapsed into Roxas' arms. He sobbed long and hard. He clutched the blond's shirt while soaking it with his tears. Roxas pat Axel's head softly before grabbing a handful of the thick, red hair and pressing the older boy's face closer to his shoulder. He let Axel cry for a long time. When Axel finally pulled away, Roxas glanced at the clock. It was 2am, Friday morning. He took out his phone and Axel spotted the 48 text messages and 30 missed calls. Most of them were from Sora, but a few were from Riku. He didn't even notice…

"Uhg. Sorry… I didn't mean to mess up your shirt…" Axel said softly. The bright, energetic young man from earlier that day was gone. In his place was a pathetic, sniffling, shell of a teenage boy. Roxas smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring way.

"Hey, it's totally fine, okay?" Roxas said softly. "Just let me call Sora back and we can talk okay?" Axel nodded and Roxas got up and stepped out into the hallway.

Axel closed his eyes and curled up, wrapping his arms around his thin legs. He willed himself not to cry anymore. He honestly didn't understand why he was so torn up about Larxene. He really didn't even like the girl that much. She was straight up unbearable to be around before Cole showed up. His face contorted into an ugly visage as he tried to hold back his tears. A few leaked out before he dropped his head, resting his forehead on his knees.

'_We're invincible. We're untouchable. We can't be killed. We can't be stopped. That is why I joined.'_ Not even seventeen, Axel became far too aware of his own mortality.

13. Roxas

As soon as the door closed behind him, Roxas hit the call back option on his phone to call Sora. His brunet cousin answered on the third ring. "ROXAS?" The scream could be heard even though Roxas had pulled his phone about a foot away from his ear. "Hey Sora…"

'Roxas! Where have you been? I know you went to hang out with Axel after school but it has been NEARLY TWELVE HOURS. YOU DROPPED OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH!' Sora screeched through the phone.

"I know! I know. Sora, calm down. I've just been at the hospital. AND BEFORE YOU PANIC, it wasn't me. I'm totally okay. I was just with Axel and Cole when Cole got the call that Larxene had been hurt. We dropped their daughter off with one of their friends… I'm at Axel's house right now… He's really not doing well," Roxas explained with a sigh. He heard Sora echo through the line.

'I get it… Roxas I really do. I'm glad you're making friends but they really aren't a good crowd. Now, I'm not telling you to leave him there alone to wallow in his own misery, but I want you to be really careful. They sell drugs! They do all sorts of weird things that I know aren't just rumors! Riku ran with them for a year and he didn't come out the same way he went in and I just don't want that to happen to you too, okay?'

Roxas nodded, not even caring that Sora couldn't see him. "Okay Sora. I'm going to stay the night with him, just to make sure he's okay. I'll come home after school tomorrow okay?"

"Okay Roxas… Love you!"

Roxas chuckled. God, Sora was just really gay sometimes. "Love you too, cuz." He hung up and returned to Axels room.

Spotting the redhead curled on the floor, he dropped to his knees next to him. "Axel… What can I do for you?" Roxas asked softly. He wanted to help Axel but wasn't totally sure how. Axel unfurled himself and grabbed Roxas, holding the blond like a teddy bear.

"Just… Just let me hold you. Please…" Roxas heard Axel whisper. The blond felt his friend's breath ghosting over his skin as he was squeezed tightly. He fell asleep watching Axel squeezing his eyes shut while the tears leaked through them.

He woke up at to the sound of Axel talking harshly to someone on the phone. Roxas vaguely heard something about coke and 47's? He couldn't be bothered to really care. Sitting up, he realized he had been tucked into a soft bed with fluffy blankets. He sat where he was, unwilling to leave the cocoon of warmth until Axel came to kick him out. He ignored the muffled voice on the other side of the wall and was content to snooze where he was. When Axel finally came in, Roxas noticed he was a little pissed.

To try to take away from Axel's irritation, Roxas spoke up. "So… What time is it?"

8. Axel

When Axel's tears finally dried, he removed himself from Roxas. He smiled when he saw that the smaller boy had fallen asleep. He got up, careful to not disturb Roxas too much, then placed the blond in his own bed. He debated about getting into bed with him or not, then decided against it. He figured that might seem too forward and he really didn't want to scare the blond off, if he hadn't done so already. They hadn't even known each other for twenty-four hours and he had already sobbed all over him. He grabbed an extra blanket and stole two pillows off his bed and settled down on the floor. Plugging his phone it to charge, he laid back and fell asleep.

A few hours later, his eyes flew open as he heard his phone go off. He silenced it then checked the screen. It was 6am. And a call from Xemnas. The last thing he wanted to do was answer. But he had a job to do, so he slid his them across the screen and answered.

"It's six in the morning. What the fuck do you want?" Axel complained. He sounded like he was croaking; his voice was raspy and thick with sleep.

'I need you to finish Larxene's job,' Xemnas commanded through the phone. 'It will be easier for you. After all, we're after Rufus Shinra this time. Your brother knows him, right? Get information. We need him on our side.'

Hearing that, Axel got up and left the room. He didn't want to wake Roxas up. "What do you mean?" he bit out carefully.

'I mean that Rufus Shinra is the new chief of police. We had the last one nice and oiled up with bribes and women. Shinra is an enigma to us right now. We need to know what his price. Men or women, boys or girls, money, food, things. I need to know what it will take to get him under my thumb.'

"Wait. This was what Larxene was working on? Shit, how did she get hurt then?!" Axel's voice got louder. He was angry now. Larxene could take care of herself. Could this new chief of police really be that dangerous?"

'She got confident. She got caught. Some officer shot her and she tried to escape from the roof. She then fell, breaking her femur. She should have been more careful.' Xemnas' voice was even, as if he didn't care. That pissed Axel off more than anything.

"You know what. Fuck you. Fuck that. Find someone else to do it."

Axel hung up the phone, still fuming silently. He returned to his room and closed the door behind him softly. His head jerked up when he heard Roxas speak.

"So… What time is it?"

Axel forced his frustrations to the side, wiping the look of anger off his face. He plastered on a smile before replying with a sheepish grin, "A little past 6am. You can go back to sleep if you want. We don't have to go anywhere until 7:30." He then watched as Roxas stretched and got out of bed with small hesitation. He smiled, knowing his bed was very warm and soft and six in the morning and probably hurt a little to leave. "Did you sleep well? For well… The two hours you did sleep?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah. I feel great," Roxas replied, a yawn punctuating his sentence. "It just feels really cold and your bed was really warm…" He looked to Axel with a small smile. "Well now that I'm up, I'm up. Do you mind me asking what you were talking about on the phone?"

"Just my boss. I'm not too happy with him right now, but that's nothing new. He's trying to get me to finish a job, and I will, but not any time soon. I want to make sure Larxene is okay…" Axel said with a tight smile. He honestly didn't like the girl, but seeing her okay would give him the strength he needed to go through with the work. Once she was okay, they'd be invincible again.

He smiled when Roxas nodded in solemn understanding. _I guess he knows what its like to need to feel strength from an outside source_. Axel was almost sad to think it, but he was glad Roxas understood. "But if we've got time, The Sand Lot is actually open. They usually sell coffee this early in the morning, but I could always go for more sea-salt ice cream. You want to head over? By the time we're done eating, it'll be time for classes to start."

"That actually sounds pretty good. I could go for some coffee, too!" Roxas agreed with a wide smile. He shuffled around to find his shoes while Axel did the same. Once they were both fit to leave the house, they took the leisurely five-minute walk to the Sand Lot. The man working the mornings was a college student and Axel had to commend his ability to be awake this early in the morning. From what he heard from Xigbar, college involved late nights and long hours. Being awake before noon was a feat to be applauded.

They finished their ice cream and coffee right as they reached the school. It was 7:30 by now and some of the early risers were making their way to school. He spotted Zexion dragging a half asleep Demyx up the street. He greeted them with a chuckled and the four boys made their way to class.

Cole's absence during the day was easily noticed. The rumors started flying as soon as Axel sat in first period Calculus without her next to him. A quick glare silenced the immediate whispers, but the cell phones were already out and fingers were tapping away, sending the school's rumor mill into full speed. Axel sighed. His temper was getting shorter and shorter as the day went by. By the time lunch rolled around, he was prepared to spend it recharging by joking with Demyx. But his plans were completely destroyed.

Xemnas paid their lunch spot a visit. Axel was only thankful that Sora and Riku whisked Roxas away for that hour.

"Eight, you have a job to do. What are you doing here?" Xemnas demanded. His voice held an edge of anger that was betraying his calm façade.

That was it for Axel. He couldn't handle anything more that day. He stood up slowly. The air around him seemed to burn with the energy coursing through his body. He was hot. He was angry. He burst, switching to Spanish, the language he first taught. One that he had only ever used to scream at his mother as she was beating him.

"_How. Dare. You. How dare you? She is a mother. She is a WIFE. SHE WAS SEVENTEEN. WE'RE ALL SO FUCKING YOUNG. HOW DO YOU EXPECT US TO DO THE JOBS SO MANY ADULTS THIRTY YEARS OLDER THAN US CAN'T? HOW CAN YOU TELL ME TO SPY ON MY OWN BROTHER? HOW CAN YOU THINK THAT A NEW MOTHER WOULDN'T GET HASTY ON THE JOB SO SHE COULD COME HOME TO HER BABY? WHAT MAKES THAT RIGHT? SO YOU KNOW WHAT. FUCK YOU. FUCK YOU AND FUCK YOUR LITTLE BOYFRIEND TO. I'M FUCKING DONE WITH THIS SHIT_," Axel screamed. He continued muttering profanity as he gathered his things and walked off campus. He hadn't even realized that he had been speaking the wrong language.

Once he was back on the streets, he ran back to the apartment. He flew into his room, turned on his laptop, plugged his headphones in, put them in, pressed play, and started drowning the world out.


End file.
